Soyinka, Nwabueze, others condemn Rivers Assembly crisis

By DAPO AKINREFON

THREE days after the mayhem at the Rivers State House of Assembly, the polity was still awash with condemnation of the action of the lawmakers and feuding stakeholders.

Among those who spoke on the crisis, yesterday, were Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, legal icons, Professor Ben Nwabueze, SAN, Itse Sagay, SAN, Olisa Agbakoba, SAN, Femi Falana, SAN.

Nobel Laurete, Professor Wole Soyinka has condemned the ongoing political crisis in Rivers State, saying that democratic grounds were being eroded in the state.

Soyinka also took a swipe at the First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan for her alleged over bearing tendencies and urged President Goodluck Jonathan to call her to order.

While he faulted the presidency for trying to absolve the president from the crisis, he said “the perception in the world is that he bears a vicarious liability in the crisis.”

Besides, he said the indifference exhibited by the President creates an enabling environment for his followers to act on his behalf.

Prof Wole Soyinka addressing  the press on the state of the Nation and  the Crisis rocking the River state House of Assembly in Lagos Thursday while Mr Femi Falana looks on. Pix Biodun Ogunleye

Stating that he was not casting aspersion on any individual, he said, “I am saying that one can establish certain conducts in the mind of one’s followers, all of which circle around impunity. There are certain ways you can convince your followers, your officials, your cohorts that they can act with impunity. There are many ways, for instance, you can expose a prey and say that prey is available.”

First Lady’s excesses
Decrying alleged excesses of the first lady, Soyinka said it was unfortunate that a mere domestic appendage of power could go to a state and take over the state for 11 days. “A queen goes to the archbishop’s domain, stays 11 days and the baron is not even allowed to move; creating an enabling environment for that baron to be dealt with. He is stopped by a Sheriff and that baron is responsible for security and governance.”

He continued: “I am calling on the President Jonathan please curb the excesses of his wife. Too much is too much. Is she the first First Lady we have had? She is now being used to abuse the authority of an elected governor.

“The governor’s lodge was tear-gassed. Anybody who said teargas was not thrown into Amaechi’s lodge is either ignorant or lying. Some of Amaechi’s security has been removed. The democratic grounds are being eroded. With a teargas thrown, the next one may be a smoke gun”.

He chided Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Joseph Mbu over his role in the political imbroglio and described him as a political policeman.

Falana laments crisis
Human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana said it was regrettable that exactly 10 years after a group of thugs attempted to abduct a sitting governor in Anambra State, another set of thugs attempted to undermine democratic institutions in Rivers State.

Falana said the silence of President Jonathan on the unfortunate development in Rivers State was tantamount to an endorsement of the political crisis.

He said: “We have been through this route before. We must tell them that we are not a conquered people. The case of Rivers is more absurd, more odious, where five members of the assembly aided by the state invaded the Assembly chambers and chased away their colleagues”.

Source: Vanguard Nigeria